Greensburg Daily News, Greensburg, IN

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  • This female lion cub is the latest addition to Greensburg's Circle S Ranch animal reserve.

    stapp's
July 31, 2012

Stapp's Circle S welcomes new lion cub

Rob Cox Greensburg Daily News

Greensburg — On Friday, Stapp's Circle S Ranch added a 4-week-old lion cub to the extensive lineup of animals housed on its 32-acre Decatur County animal reserve.

Josie Clark, an animal trainer and caretaker with Stapp's, introduced the facility's latest addition to the Daily News, even allowing this reporter to pose for a picture with the baby lion.

"Business has been slow this summer," Clark explained. "We knew we needed to add an animal or two to increase traffic."

Clark's search for a new attraction started with the ABC-affiliated program "Jack Hanna's Wild Countdown." It was there she first heard of a facility in Massillon, Ohio called Stump Hill Farms. Stump Hill, she learned, breeds and deals in lions.

"I called them," Clark said, "and they had two new lion cubs. They wanted us to buy both, but we don't need a male lion Ñ we've already got Jogga, so we only purchased the female. Besides, we would've eventually had to separate brother and sister anyway to prevent in-breeding. She's done very well without her brother."

Stapp's took delivery of the as-yet-unnamed cub July 27.

"We just call her Lion Cub for now," Clark added, "until we think of a suitable name. She was born June 30."

When she's old enough, Stapp's plans to mate the new cub with their adult male lion, Jogga. According to Clark, lions typically have liters of two or three cubs, which will significantly expand Stapp's big cat numbers.

In addition to the new cub and Jogga, the reserve is also home to three tigers Ñ Jasmine, Bell and Rocky.

Jogga was rescued from an owner who could no longer raise him following the South-central Indiana tornadoes of March. The three tigers, however, were raised and nurtured from infancy by Clark.

"Lion cubs tend to be much more advanced compared to tiger cubs of the same age," she said. "The tigers slept far more than she does. She's already a very active and clever climber, too. At the same age, you were lucky to catch the tiger cubs awake."

Whether lions or tigers, however, Clark added that USDA regulations regarding both are the same.

"The USDA monitors us closely," she said. "All the big cats have to be in a pen by 12 weeks. That's when they're considered too dangerous to interact with the public. Once she gets a little older, you wouldn't want to directly interact with her. Once they hit a certain age, lions get pretty wild Ñ not intentionally malicious, but dangerously playful. They can easily kill you without meaning to."

For now, though, the new cub is of the perfect size and temperament for interacting with Stapp's visitors.

She's already accomplished the intended goal of increasing Stapp's business, too.

"We've advertised the cub using Facebook, our website and flyers," Clark said. "Since her arrival, our business has already doubled. Word of mouth has really helped, too. Everyone who gets a chance should come out a see her while she's still cuddly and companionable and adorable."

For more information or to arrange a visit to Stapp's Circle S not-for-profit animal reserve, call 663-6709 or 877-474-2327.



Contact: Rob Cox at 812-663-3111 x7011.

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